Melbourne's Micheluzzi had his moment in the sun as one of the later starters on Thursday and after a couple of pars, was thrilled to see his tee shot at the 209-yard third hole at the Doha Golf Club in Qatar's capital disappear on the green -- even if the TV cameras weren't there to capture the ace.
When the 29-year-old Victorian, who's not pulled up many trees with his play this season, subsequently birdied the fifth as to move to three under, it looked as if Micheluzzi could be set for a special day.
But he didn't spy another birdie and made only a couple of bogeys to finish with a one-under 71, alongside his Australian colleagues Jason Scrivener and Ryan Peake, who were tied for 47th while others made hay on a low-scoring day.
Nobody cashed in better than former Masters champ Patrick Reed, who's on a Middle East tear after winning the Dubai Desert Classic and then only losing in a play-off in the Bahrain Championship last weekend, which moved the American to No.2 in the Race to Dubai order of merit.
Reed made six birdies in his opening eight holes and finished with a seven-under 65 to share the lead with New Zealander Daniel Hiller.
Reed had originally expected to be about 550km away in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to start another season with LIV Golf, but instead he became the second major defection from the Saudi-funded league, along with Brooks Koepka, and intends to get a full PGA Tour card for 2027 by finishing in the top-10 in the Race to Dubai.
Finland's Oliver Lindell, Denmark's Jacob Skov Olesen, Sweden's Marcus Kinhult, Italy's Gregorio de Leo, and Spain's Angel Ayora were all leading the chase with rounds of 66.
Ireland's 54-year-old former European Ryder Cup captain Padraig Harrington, like Micheluzzi, opened with a 71 to mark his 500th career start on the European tour.
